MMC Annual Report

Program Impact (7/1/21-6/30/22)

Caravan du Nord - Bringing a showcase of Minnesota musicians across the state, MMC implemented concerts, workshops, and networking events in Alexandria, Austin, Worthington, Mankato, Faribault, Detroit Lakes, Duluth, Hibbing, and Red Wing during the fall of 2021. The tour featured 27 musical acts and 17 workshops.

MN Music Summit - Our 2022 Summit was three days full of activities for the music community. Concerts at Mall of America, Live from The Mitchell in Duluth, and more featured a variety of MN musicians. With a theme of "Building Forward Together", 35 industry experts led workshops, discussion panels, and clinics on an array of valuable topics. By offering a sliding scale for registration, 40% of attendees were able to attend for free.

Performance Opportunities - MMC continued to grow partnerships for paid performance opportunities. Partners included: Summit Brewing Company, Mall of America, Downtown Minneapolis Council, St. Paul Downtown Alliance, Chankaska Creek Winery, Republic MSP, St. Paul Chamber of Commerce, Canterbury Park, ReBoot Showcase, IDS Center Crystal Court, St. Paul Parks Conservancy, Musicant Group, College of St. Scholastica, Minnesota Events and Festivals Association, Hook and Ladder Theater. This fiscal year, MMC has booked 314 performances!

Mentoring - Artists have a brief interview with MMC staff to determine goals and what they are looking for in a mentor, and we personally match them with an expert in that field.

Vendor Discounts - 23 businesses offered discounts for MMC members to help alleviate business expenses.

Workshops - We held six web workshops on a variety of topics throughout the year, in addition to workshops at Caravan du Nord stops and the MN Music Summit. Most are archived on the MMC youtube channel.

Networking Events / Open Mic - MMC held several online networking gatherings for statewide musicians. In March, we launched a new Open Mic & Networking gathering monthly at Summit Brewing Company.

Mendoza Open Door Fund - This fund continued to help alleviate barriers to participation for musicians, namely travel costs for performance opportunities across the state. Gifts were given this year in memory of Carlos Mendoza, the late father of founding Board member Tony Mendoza, who the MOD Fund is named in honor of.

Safer Spaces Initiative - MMC sponsored this grassroots initiative to address harm in the music industry. We funded several Sexual Violence 101 trainings, and enlisted a project manager to oversee the initiative's administration. The group held a visioning session at the MN Music Summit in June 2022.

Fiscal Sponsorship - MMC was fiscal sponsor to 3 projects in this fiscal year.

• Voices in the Back, a web series and podcast with performances and conversations by BIPOC MN music professionals on topics of inequality in the MN music scene
• The New Standards' SCORE! tour, a showcase of songs and themes from favorite cult and classic film scores
• Minnesota Original Music Festival, set to hold its first free festival with live music and workshops for musicians in July 2022